ABOUT a year and a half ago I attended my first Bill Gothard lecture on Basic Youth Conflicts. I saw this man hold people spell bound for a full week. I realize that, while the man is deeply spiritual, he has no apparent external charisma. I wondered what the magic was that enabled him to hold his audience over such long periods of time. I determined that part of it was his clever use of the overhead projector, and the way in which he involved his audience in writing out parts of the information presented.
Armed with this concept, I began to hold family-life conferences within our conference, using materials similar to his. I found that if I presented to the listeners a basic outline, in which they could write the steps or points of my presentation and do simple line drawings, charts, et cetera, based on what I presented with the overhead projector, that I, too, could hold their attention. This experience made me realize that something needed to be done to make our evangelistic approach even more effective through the use of this neglected tool.
Use of Overhead Projector
Our conference is promoting pastor's classes by providing a "mini-budget"—just as one might have an evangelistic budget for a major effort. We have also subsidized the purchase of overhead projectors, so a pastor in our conference may purchase a Bell and Howell overhead projector for $50. About fifty of our pastors are now using or have access to a 3M or Bell and Howell overhead projector. Many of them have acetate rolls that can be used in making drawings, writing out texts for Bible-marking classes, et cetera.
We have completed a set of more than thirty visuals in full color for use in pastor's classes and in public evangelism. This covers the major points of our message, such as the Sabbath, state of the dead, law and grace, the beast series of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13, the symbols of prophecy, and the mark of the beast, to name a few. The entire basic message can be conveyed through the use of visuals and overhead transparencies in a fully lighted room. The storage of this entire set takes no more room than a small attache case slightly larger than letter-sized paper and about three inches thick.
Enthusiastic Response
The pastors who are using over head projectors are excited about this new-found media. Many are making their own visuals. Henry Fuss, pastor of the San Diego Spanish church, has developed a thousand visuals for his use. This tool can be used like a black board, like a blacklight chart, or for multiple purposes as a teaching device in pastor's classes and in public efforts.
These visuals are now being produced by the Health Productions Department of the School of Health, Loma Linda University. They will be available through the Ministerial Association, Southeastern California Conference, P.O. Box 7584, Riverside, California 92503. The price will not be set until production is completed, but it will be minimal in relation to their value. Sets should be available by the time this article appears.
In a day when people are loathe to go out so many nights during the week, our pastors are finding that they can gather a class together either on one night of the week or on Sabbath morning in the more traditional pastor's evangelistic Bible class. By giving away premiums, such as gift-book awards for attendance, to the non-Adventist, the results are almost as startling as they are in more expensive evangelism.
Recently I attended what I thought was a rather successful evangelistic meeting, held by one of our very efficient evangelists in a large city in our conference. Nearly 400 were in attendance. The opening night attendance, three nights before, had been 700, but for a rainy Tuesday night, 400 was a good audience. Yet, only about forty non-Adventists had signed up as being in attendance in the meeting. One pastor commented after the meeting, "I had six non-Adventists who have attended these meetings, but I had thirteen non-Adventists in attendance at my class last Sabbath." He calls his class the "Seekers Bible Class." Other men use other names.
The Pastor's Bible Class
We have printed a simple multipurpose handbill for the pastor's class that allows a pastor to write in his own topics and put on his own picture. All we have on it is a logo with the words "Profiles of Faith Bible Class," to be used with the new and exciting lessons for the pastor's classes. We are pushing the use of these lessons, along with the use of the overhead projector. With the dry photocopier, such as a 3M photocopier, or a Xerox machine, acetates can be made of almost anything that one can see or read. These acetates can be blown up on the screen and shown to audiences in a pastor's class or evangelistic meetings. The use of the overhead projector is not limited to small meetings, and the advantage of being in full light is that you can see the audience response.
There are. numerous materials available and catalogs can be secured from such companies as the Chartpak Company, Leeds, Massachusetts 01053, and the 3M Company, Box 3344, St. Paul, Minnesota 55101. They have the material needed to make visuals. There are such things as arrows, translucent tape, translucent and opaque rub-off letters, et cetera. There are numerous colors of cellophane-like adhesive material that can be added to various areas to make multicolored charts.
Using Visuals Effectively
Part of the effectiveness of this tool is having movement involved with what you are trying to convey. For instance, in the traditional old Sunday temple, where we had the pillars supporting the roof of the temple, the roof said "Sunday Temple" and the pillars were the various eight texts that mention the first day of the week in the New Testament. These are standing upon a support. All one needs do is to slide a piece of cardboard across the visual, and one by one block out the pillars so that the blocking out makes the pillars non-visible on the screen. When he has done this, the question is, "What is it that is supporting the structure?" At this time he reveals, rather than obliterates, the foundation. The word at the bottom coming through the foundation is "tradition."
In the reverse of this process one can make a Sabbath temple. The roof structure says "Sabbath Temple" on it. The pillars are then the various areas dealing with the Sabbath, such as the Sabbath at Creation, Mt. Sinai, the keeping of the Sabbath by the apostles, and the Sabbath in the new earth. As one pillar at a time is revealed, it is seen that this roof structure will stand. Then, at the end, the question is asked "What is it that supports these pillars?" Finally the base of this temple is revealed, with the words "Jesus Christ" written on it, showing that Christ was also a Sabbathkeeper. This gives movement.
The three major ways that one can give movement to any of these visuals is by revelation, obliteration, or the use of overlays. On overlays the material is placed on acetate, such as printing or portions of the chart, and these are laid over a basic acetate. As they are laid over they show through on the screen. They are hinged at the side of the acetate frame with Scotch tape and then flipped over one by one, as the points of the presentation are made.
The overhead projector is proving to be a very effective tool in pastor's classes and public evangelism. It is our hope that this new tool will be used, not only in the Southeastern California Conference but more effectively around the world in the presentation of the third angel's message.
